EU Targets 'Amazon' This Time... Antitrust Lawsuit

▲Margrethe Vestager, Vice President of the European Commission [Image source=AP News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] The European Union (EU), which has been conducting an antitrust investigation into the US e-commerce company Amazon since last year, is expected to formally file a lawsuit as early as next week.

According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) on the 11th (local time), the European Commission, the EU's top antitrust regulatory authority, is preparing a lawsuit against Amazon. The plan is to officially file the case as early as next week, or at the latest the following week. WSJ, citing a source familiar with the matter, reported, "The Commission is preparing the lawsuit and has been deliberating over the draft charges for two months."

Amazon is accused of abusing its dual status as both a platform operator and a distributor. It is alleged that Amazon has collected activity information of sellers using its platform and leaked information about the products they sell and transaction details to use in its own product development. This is the reason why the EU is filing a lawsuit against Amazon.

The lawsuit is expected to take about a year. If Amazon is found to have violated the EU antitrust laws, the European Commission is likely to impose a fine amounting to 10% of Amazon's annual sales. It can also enforce adjustments to unfair business practices.

Margrethe Vestager, Vice President of the European Commission, has warned, "We will closely examine how information from retailers was misused or abused."

Previously, Vice President Vestager imposed a $9 billion antitrust fine on Google for violations of antitrust laws.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.